Ventilator grating



July 4, 1961 E, LEX ET AL 2,990,766

VENTILATOR GRATINGk g A Filed June 29, 1959 FIG.

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rates The invention is in respect of a ventilator grating for all kinds of vehicles, and intended more especially for locomotives and railcars, whose suction surface is located in the direction of travel and has several blades arranged in a frame.

Such known-type ventilator gratings have horizontally lying blades. This arrangement has the disadvantage that, at the end of the grating, looked at in the direction of travel, a piling-up of air or air overpressure is set up, and, at the beginning of the grating, a suction is created, so that at the beginning of the ventilator grating only a small quantity of air is suctioned through by a suction fan for example which is fitted behind the grating, whereas at the end of the grating a disproportionately large amount of air is sucked in. Moreover, from one blade which is located above another there drops down into the space located between the two blades where the air passes through, any loose particles which happen to have become trapped. The stream of air takes these loose particles along wit-h it.

The separation of rain, snow, coarse d-ust, etc., is consequently very slight throughout, particularly at the point where the air piles up, and almost the whole of these loose particles penetrates into the filter and chokes it up, or else they get inside the vehicles interior, e.g. they get into the engine room, or the railcar, etc. In the course of all this, the turbulence and the inequalities in the air stream, and the underpressure in the vehicles interior too, are al1 factors which assume adverse proportions. What is more, such a grati-ng is difficult to clean.

The purpose of the invention is to avoid these disadvantages and to achieve a uniform action on the part of the ventilator grating, that is to say, to obtain, along the whole surface of the grating a fairly uniform air passage and to bring about a separating action in all the sections of surface.

The invention consists in the fact that all the blades are vertical.

This arrangement has the advantage that water, snow, dust particles, etc., rebound from or accumulate on the vertical blades and drop downwards vertically, a thing which was not possible with the previous run of gratings. Not only that, but the air stream is also able to pass through the whole surface of the grating with a greater evenness than hitherto. The aforementioned mani-festations such as turbulence and under-pressure assume more serviceable values.

Further 'details concerning the invention will be seen in the examples of execution represented in the accompanying drawings, which are as follows:

FIGURE l shows a side view of an electric locomotive equipped with ventilator :gratings in accordance with the invention,

FIGURE 2 shows an enlarged side view of the ventilator grating,

FIGURE 3 shows a section along III III of FIGUERE 2) FIGURE 4 shows an enlarged part-representation in the direction` IV-IV of FIGURE 3,

FIGURE 5 shows another for-m of execution of the partially represented section in accordance with FIG- URE 4,

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FIGURE 6 shows a section V-I-VI of FIGUREI 2, represented on an enlarged scale,

FIGURE 7 shows a differently executed ventilator grating in a section similar to that of FIGURE 6, shown on an enlarged scale, and

FIGURE 8 shows a section through a further form of execution of the laminar blade.

An electric locomotive 1 represented in FIGURE l has, along its side outer walls 2, cut-out sections 3 in which ventilator gratings 4 are inserted.

The ventilator -grating 4 represented in FIGURES 2 to 6 has an outer frame 5 running all round and madeV of at material which carries, running all the way round, a flange 6 pointing outwards which is embedded in a flexible mass 7 which may, for example, be rubber. The flexible mass 7 is secured on the cut-out section 3 of the wall 2.

rIlhe outer frame also has an edge 8 bent towards the inside of the frame, which is located towards the interior of the locomotive 1 and on which a known-type filter 9 can be attached by way of a U piece 10 fitted on the'` edge 8. v

By means of rubber buffers 12 mounted on the U piece 10' the filter 9 is supported as against a portion of walling 13 which is mounted on the cut-out section 3 of the side wall 2 and which also carries part of the flexible mass 7.

The lower portion 10 of the inwardly bent edge 8 is constructed as a water collar and has, at a certain height of for example l0 to l5 cm., a part 11 bent inwards, which extends along the whole length of the lower portion 10.

Into the outer frame 5 an inserta'ble frame 14 running all the way round is inserted and, for example, welded-in, its bottom section 15 `forming a horizontal run-off surface, in accordance with FIGURES 4 and 6.

The bottom section of the inserted frame may also, as can be seen in FIGURE 5, present an outwardly oblique surface 16 so that water is able to run off towards the outside. This form of execution can -also be used in the case of obliquely positioned gratings; the surface 16 should, in this event, not be inclined towards the vehicles interior, -with the exception that drainage holes are provided at 16.

The inserted frame y15, see FIGURE 6, carries a rst, front row of vertical blades and av second row of vertical blades, marked 17 and 18 respectively. The blades 17 and 18 are arranged staggered to each other. The blades 17 have a clearance 219 and the blades 18 a clearance 20 4between them.

The two uniformly constructed blades 17 and 18 are of angular shaped cross section and have arms 21, 22 which inclose an angle 23 of 55 to 65. They may also inclose an angle 23 of less than 90.

Each rst blade 26 at the beginning and at the end of the front row of blades directly touches a side wall 27 of the inserted frame 14- with its outermost arm.

The blades 17, 26 of the outermost row of blades have apexes 24 all lying in the same plane and pointing outside the car 1. The apexes 24 project beyond the outermost limit of the lower portion 15 of the inserted frame 14 and beyond the side wall 2 of the locomotive 1. An inner space 25 of the protruding portion of the blade 17, lying opposite to the apex 24, also projects beyond the front edge of the bottom portion 15 of the inserted frame 14 and thus has a conductive connection with the outside air.

The blades 17 and 18 are so arranged that the rear blades `18 form a virtual image, i.e. turned 180 about the vertical, to the front blades 17, and the arms 21 and 22 of each rear blade 18 overlap the arms 21 and 22 of two front blades 17 with clearance.

The manner in which this ventilator grating operates is as follows: The ventilator grating 4, which is embodied in the locomotive 1, and which can be used in both directions, see arrow 28, intersects with the apexes 24 of the outer row of blades 17 4and 26 the air of the outside -atmosphere which is in a state of movement relative to the grating. The motor located inside the locomotive, not represented in the drawings, suctions-in air from outside, in the direction of an arrow 29, the outside air intercepted being passed, in the direction of an arrow 30, through the ventilator grating 4 and the filter 9.

Any dust particles, rain and snow accumulate in the spaces 25 and 31 of the blades 17, 18. These particles, which have to be separated, drop downwards and are able, by way of the bottom part of the inserted frame 14, to flow oif outwards, or iind their way out into the open air through the joints iat 25. The grating also functions without air-intake by a fan or the like.

In FIGURE 7 a similar arrangement to the one described above is shown, the same reference symbols denoting identical parts.

In the inserted frame there are provided, once again, front and rear rows of blades 35 and 36. The front blades 3S are so positioned however that one arm 37 is arranged fairly vertically to the outer plane of the ventilator grating. This arrangement is intended for a ventilator grating which is only moved in the direction of an arrow 38.

Between the rear blades 36 a third row of more blades 39 can be tted which bring about an additional cleansing of air which has been suctioned-in or passed through. The manner of operation is 'the same as above. With this arrangement the first blade 35 does not need to lie close to the side wall 27 of the inserted frame 14 with one of its sides, since the fairly vertical position of the arm to the direction of travel allows of an intake of air into the grating at this point.

Instead of being fitted in the inserted frame 14, the blades may just as well be mounted directly in the outer frame 5. The essential consideration is that the apexes 24 of the outer row of blades 17, 35 protrude beyond the side wall 2 of the locomotive 1 and beyond the outer frame 5.

In FIGURE 8 is shown a section through a blade 40 on an enlarged scale. The outer surface 41 and the inner surface 42 of the blade 40 have been roughed-up, see reference 43. It may be sulicient for only one of the surfaces to be roughed up. This roughing-up has the special advantage that snow and dust particles, as well as water, stay stuck on the blade and the air stream in the vicinity of the blades is impeded by the rough surface, and so the heavier particles drop oli. The roughing-up can be done by sand-blasting.

The blades and/or the frame respectively may be made of steel, stainless steel, aluminium, light-metal alloys, other metals, plastic, etc.

The frames are not tied down to one particular shape; apart from the rectangular design illustrated they can have rounded-off edges, or they can be circular, oval, polyhedral, etc. in shape.

The ventilator grating 4 is also suitable for railcars, motor buses, lorries, water vessels, aircraft, etc.

The water collar 10 may also be tted on the inserted frame 14.

We claim:

1. A vehicle ventilator grating which comprises an inner and ari outer row of vertically extending V-shaped blades, and an outer frame accommodating said rows of blades, and in which the blades in each row are spaced apart from one another so as to leave gaps which are overlapped by the blades of the other row, and in which the blades of the inner row have inwardly directed V-shaped apexes and the blades of the outer row have outwardly directed V-shaped apexes projecting beyond the outer wall of the 'vehicle and beyond the frame, the apexes of the blades of both rows being acute-angled, whereby air can be drawn into the vehicle through the grating by movement of the vehicle.

2. A vehicle ventilator grating as claimed in claim l, in which the angle of each blade is between and 55.

3. Ventilator grating as claimed in claim l, characterised in that the inner spaces of the proud portions of the outer row of blades project, partially at least, beyond the edge of the bottom portion of the inserted frame or of the outer frame, so that any water which has collected in the inner spaces of the blades is able to drain off irnmediately.

4. Ventilator grating as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that a bottom part of the frame slopes downwards with an angle of -inclination towards the outside.

5. Ventilator grating as claimed in claim l, characterised in that a water collar on the bottom part of the frame is equipped with drawn-in inner edge facing the blades.

6. Ventilator grating as claimed in claim l, characterised in that the blades are roughed-up on their surfaces, especially on the inner surfaces of the V shape.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 345,945 Andrews July 20, 1886 547,356 Pancoast Oct. l, 1895 2,703,519 Esselman Mar. 8, 1955 

